Perfume dispenser



' May 20, 1941. L. WINTERS 2,242,376

PERFUME DISPENSER Filed Aug. 8, 1959 QWUMM/OO Patented May 20, 1941 UiTE STTE.

angers eraser 1 Claim.

My invention has for its object to produce an eificient perfume dispenser for dispensing small or minute quantities of prefume located in vials of the type commonly used in the retail trade for containing and selling perfume.

The invention provides a means for producing a pneumatic pressure within the vial to insure immediate discharge of a minute quantity of the perfume from the vial.

The invention may be contained in dispensers of different forms and to illustrate a practical application of the invention, I have selected a perfume dispenser as illustrative of the different forms or embodiments of the invention. The perfume dispenser selected as an example of structures containing the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing.

The figure illustrates a sectional view of the dispenser.

The vial, that may be of the type commonly used in trade for containing small quantities of perfume, is located in a shell, formed preferably, of a hard composition, that may be molded or cast when plastic. One'end of the shell I is provided with a bushing 2, located in a cap 3, in which is located a piston member 4. The piston member 4 has an enlarged conical end portion 5 that terminates in a short cylindrical part I that loosely fits the bushing. The piston member 4 is provided with a shank 8 that quite accurately fits the outer end part of the inner surface of the bushing 2. The shank 8 is cylindrical and is provided with a recessed portion in the form of a shallow channel having, preferably, a double ogee curved surface, extending from one side of the channel to the other and tangential to the cylindrical surface parts of the shank, substantially as shown in the drawing. The surface contour of the channel enables free flow of the liquid from the channel and prevents capillaric retention of the liquid, as in corners of a rectangularly shaped channel. The inner end or edge of the bushing 2 is provided with lugs I2 formed by turning inwardly small edge parts of the bushing and the outer end of the bushing is provided with an inwardly-extending shoulder or ledge l3. A spring I4 is located intermediate the enlarged end portion 1 and the lugs I2 to bias the piston member 4 outwardly to press the conical end portion 5 against the ledge 13 and to yieldingly resist its inward movement with respect to the bushing 2.

The inner end of the bushing 2 is surrounded by a gasket l5, preferably formed of soft rubber, that tightly embraces the bushing. The vial H, with cork removed, is inserted in the shell and the cap 3 is secured in position to press the gasket l5 against the edge of the open end of the vial. The bottom of the shell is provided with a spring 22 disposed intermediate the bottom of the vial I1 and the bottom of the shell for yieldingly pressing the vial I! against the gasket IE to seal the lip 24 of the vial and prevent the escape of the perfume. This establishes a sealed connection between the vial H and the bushing 2 and enables the use of vials of different lengths.

The end 20 may be provided with a large opening 25 to permit entrance of air into the interior of the shell, and evaporation of the perfume in case of slight leakage that may be caused by failure to tightly connect or screw the cap 3 onto the shell. I

In the operation of the dispenser, the dispenser is inverted and the piston member 4 is pressed into the space defined by the bushing and the interior of the vial, which produces a slight rise in the pressure of the air thus entrapped within the vial. When the recessed'part of the piston enters within the end of the bushing 2, the pneumatic pressure forces a small amount of perfume into the recess It, which will readily flow there from upon any part against which the end of the piston member is pressed. This insures quick discharge of a minute quantity of perfume. The piston may thus be rapidly pressed and released to distribute the perfume by discharging minute quantities at different points of an article or object.

I claim:

In a perfume dispenser, a shell; a removable vial located in the shell; a cover member for closing one end of the shell; a bushing located in the outer end of the cover member and having an inwardly extending ledge; a gasket surrounding the bushing; a spring located in the bottom of the shell for pressing the lip of the vial against the gasket; a piston member having v a flaring inner end part loosely fitting the interior of the bushing; a second spring for normally pressing the said flaring part against the corner of said ledge to produce a substantial line contact for sealing the interior of the said bushing and the vial by the pressure of the said second spring; and the piston member having a shank normally protruding from the cover and closely fitting the interior surface of the upper end of the bushing, the shank having a cylindrical surface and a shallow annular channel having ogee curved surfaces tangential to the cylindrical surface and forming a recess for receiving liquid from the vial when the piston member is pressed into the bushing.

LEE L. WINTERS. 

